Citi Open: Opelka books spot in second round vs. Medvedev

Reilly Opelka won against qualifier Murphy Cassone 7-6 (4), 6-7 (5), 6-3 to move into the second round of the Citi Open at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Washington on Monday.

He will be Daniil Medvedev’s first test on American hard courts this season.

For Opelka, this match extends his perfect first-round record in Washington to 5-0 since 2019.

The former World No. 17, now ranked 74, who stunned Novak Djokovic en route to the Brisbane final in January, showed glimpses of the powerful form that once made him America’s top-ranked player.

For Cassone, the match marked a milestone in its own right, his first ATP Tour main-draw appearance, capping a meteoric rise from outside the Top 800 less than a year ago.

Taylor Fritz, fresh off a stellar grass season with titles in Stuttgart and Eastbourne and a semifinal run at Wimbledon, headlines a star-studded field as the ATP Tour returns to Washington this week.

The American No. 1 looks to extend U.S. dominance at the event after Sebastian Korda’s breakthrough last year ended a 16-year drought for American men. Fritz is joined by 15 other Americans, including Top 10 stars Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe, and five overall Top 10 players in the draw.

Washington ATP 500, other first-round results (William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center, hard, USD 2.396.115, most recent results first):

• Zachary Svajda vs. Miomir Kecmanovic

• David Goffin vs. Yunchaokete Bu
• Gael Monfils vs. Yibing Wu
• Quentin Halys vs. Aleksandar Kovacevic
• Jaume Munar vs. Marcos Giron
• Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard vs. Aleksandar Vukic
• Yoshihito Nishioka vs. Jenson Brooksby: monday
• Learner Tien vs. Emilio Nava: monday
• Cameron Norrie beat Billy Harris (Q): 6-3, 7-6 (4)
• Mackenzie McDonald (WC) beat Colton Smith (Q): 6-4, 6-1
• Alexandre Muller beat Beibit Zhukayev (Q): 6-4, 6-4
• Daniel Evans (WC) beat Zizou Bergs: 3-6, 6-4, 6-3
• Ethan Quinn (WC) beat Christopher O’Connell: 6-3, 6-2
• Fabian Marozsan beat Benjamin Bonzi: 7-5, 6-1
• Matteo Arnaldi beat Daniel Altmaier: 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (2)